Gastroscopy and Colonoscopy: Detecting and Removing Hidden Time Bombs
Endoscopy Can Diagnose and Treat
A gastroscope or colonoscope is a soft, flexible tube equipped with a high-definition camera and a working channel. It allows doctors to directly observe the esophagus, stomach, duodenum, colon, and rectum.
Unlike many imaging tests, endoscopy can both find lesions and treat selected problems through the working channel. Instruments can be inserted to remove polyps, stop bleeding, take biopsies, dilate strictures, or remove foreign bodies.
Polyps · Early cancer · Bleeding · Submucosal tumors · Biopsy · Minimally invasive therapy
What Problems Can Endoscopy Treat?
Gastrointestinal polyps are small mucosal growths, and some may have malignant potential. When doctors find suitable polyps, they can remove them with a snare or other endoscopic tools, helping reduce future cancer risk.
For very early digestive tract cancers limited to the mucosal layer, EMR or ESD may allow complete removal of cancerous tissue while preserving the organ. For submucosal tumors, techniques such as STER or EFR may remove deeper lesions through minimally invasive endoscopic methods.
- Inflammation and ulcers
- Gastrointestinal polyps
- Early digestive tract cancer
- Submucosal tumors
- Bleeding, strictures, foreign bodies, and selected hemorrhoids
- Long-term reflux, bloating, or indigestion
- Unexplained abdominal pain or weight loss
- Anemia, black stool, or blood in stool
- Persistent H. pylori infection
- People aged 40 and above for screening
Painless Endoscopy: “Take a Nap” Through the Examination
Painless gastroscopy and colonoscopy use intravenous sedation so the patient can sleep through the procedure. For colonoscopy, bowel preparation is very important because clean intestines allow doctors to see clearly and avoid missing lesions.
"The value of endoscopy is not only finding disease, but finding it early enough to treat it more gently."